I think being on a film set for such a long time made me a technical actor without realizing it.
I think I have just always had an awareness that when you go to a premiere and people start cheering and shouting your name and stuff, they are shouting at a perception of you that they have.
I think it’s useful, as a famous person, to have as little separation between the perception of you and how you really are – because otherwise I’d be sitting here thinking I’m keeping secrets, and wondering when you’re going to find out.
I was very much a product of the public-school system. There was only one other kid in my class who had parents not involved in the stock market or law.
I would consider doing any part as long as the script is good and the film has an interesting director.
I’m a huge fan of Brad Pitt. He could have done rom-coms his entire career, but he took it in a different direction.
You pick projects for the part, the director, and the script. I just want to do different, interesting stuff.
I know me, and I know that I’m not somebody that particularly merits a lot of screaming and shouting. And there’s nothing special about me as opposed to hundreds of thousands of other people everywhere.
My taste in the films I’ve taken as an actor is similar to what I’d do a director or writer: all quite odd, challenging stuff, slightly off-the-wall.
People who have car collections – I never understood that. I always thought that was unnecessary. It’s not beautiful, it’s not creative. It’s just showing how much money you’ve got.
I absolutely don’t relate to being beaten down my whole life – I had amazing opportunities at a young age – but there is still in many, many people’s minds the notion that I’ll never be able to escape Harry Potter.
I always saw Michael Gambon wearing madly psychedelic socks, and I always thought that’s it is one of the few areas where men can really express colour and have a bit of a dandyish quality to their outfit.
I basically have the diet of a 19th-century Irish navy, apart from the litre of stout a day. It’s meat and potatoes and bread and cheese: those are my four food groups.
I could never do stand-up because it’s that thing of having to get up on stage. And out of every 10 jokes you tell, nine of them have to get a really good response.
I’m a serial monogamist. I’m not one of those people that can date loads of people at the same time, it’s all too complicated.
I’m never going to be in something as commercially successful as ‘Harry Potter’ ever again. It’s impossible. So that gives me incredible freedom to go off and make the slightly off-the-wall films that I want to make.
I’m thrilled of the acceptance I get abroad. The people are so hearty, warm and grateful and I feel privileged having seen so many countries and some of the greatest monuments.
I’ve always had, like, from the age of about 11, I’ve had such an intolerance for bad behaviour of actors that I don’t think I was ever going to be that person.
When you’re seventeen to early twenties, that’s the time you’re trying to work out who you are. If you’re trying to make some kind of artistic or creative impact, that’s the age when you start to figure out how to do that.
With any kind of artistic thing, it’s a muscle, like any athlete, and the moment you’re not doing it, you lose all confidence. That’s why I’m terrible with down time.